Advocating for the happiness of your employees is beneficial to everyone, especially your business. The truth is, when people are happy they do better work. Happiness brings people to be more motivated, energized and willing to help. An employee who is happy with the company they are working for will want to see the company succeed, and will work harder for it. According to Forbes.com, happy employees are 20% more productive than employees who are unhappy with their job, company or boss.

In the book, The Truth About Employee Engagement, Patrick Lencioni (author) boils employee happiness down to:

An individual’s want to feel like who they are matters (they want people to know their name).
What they do has an impact (that they are engaged in relevant work)
They’re making progress, and moving forward.

How can you, as an employer, ensure that your employees are happy and feeling appreciated at work?

Host Company Lunches

Everyone loves free food. Offering company lunches during meetings or trainings is a great way to bring the group together, focus on work, while also showing your employees some appreciation. Of course, this can be expensive and doesn’t need to be something that happens often. Hosting a lunch meeting once each month or every other month is a great way to show your appreciation without breaking the bank. People want to know that their hard work is being noticed and that they are valued in their place of work. If you can show them this at the cost of a lunch every so often, it’s a win-win.

Allow Time Off

Some employees ask for time off too frequently, and we’re not advocating for that. Instead, offering a day off every now and then for their birthday, or a family event or even just for some R&R is a very appreciated way to show your employees that you care. Everyone wants a break every once in a while, and if you’re willing to let your employees have an extra day off a couple of times each year, that will really go a long way. Let them know you’re giving them the day off to relax and enjoy as a reward for their hard work, and you’ll be glad you did.

Employee Incentives

Similar to customer incentives, employee incentives keep the bar high in a fun way. People will work harder knowing they are earning a little something extra. Offer some fun and friendly competition between employees and reward whomever can receive more positive online reviews, or customer referrals. This way, your employees are working harder for you and benefiting your business, and they’re also getting something out of it so they feel appreciated. The reward could be in the form of a gift card to a local restaurant, a longer lunch break, or anything else that you think would entice your employees.

As a business owner, it’s your job to keep your employees happy and motivated. Letting them know they are appreciated is a great way to do both of those things. Be creative and try to make work both productive and fun!

For more insights on marketing strategy that actually works for small business, subscribe to the FreshLime Newsletter here. Connect with Jay Bean, Founder of FreshLime and Small Business Marketing Expert on LinkedIn and Twitter. And last of all, if any of these tips have helped you or if you have anything to add please comment below. We’d love to hear from you!